Visiting Gammelstad Church Town in Luleå is a fascinating and historically interesting experience. The church town is not only charming, but also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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Gammelstad church town in Luleå
Gammelstad Church Town is the largest and best-preserved church town in the world, and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996. Once upon a time, people flocked here for lively church holidays, when the whole church town came alive. Today, the town is still a vibrant place - the church town traditions are kept alive to some extent, while the place is visited by many curious tourists.
Incidentally, this is where the city of Luleå was founded in the 17th century, when it briefly went from being a church town to a real city. When Luleå was later moved, due to land uplift, the place came to be called "Gammelstad".
Gammelstad church town is located just west of the centre of Luleå, in Norrbotten.
What is a church town?
So, what exactly is a church town? This is something we learned more about while travelling by motorhome through Norrland. Although Gammelstad church town in Luleå is the largest and best preserved, it is far from the only one.
In the past, when churches were compulsory in Sweden, church towns were a solution in Norrland, where distances were long. Many people had no way of getting back and forth to the church during the day, so they needed a cottage near the church where they could spend the night.
Going to church was certainly compulsory, but it was not just a 'necessary evil'. Church holidays were an opportunity to meet people outside the village and were often combined with markets, entertainment and other activities.
Over time, church holidays were divided into 'old people' and and "youth weekends". The youthful weekends often became lively events, and were often the occasion for new acquaintances, sometimes leading to marriage ...
A Unesco World Heritage Site
Of the total of 71 church towns that once existed in Sweden, only 16 remain today, most of which have only small parts preserved. Gammelstad church town is Sweden's largest and best preserved church town, with a total of 404 cottages.
In 1996, the Church City was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, and the World Heritage Site includes 'the Church, surrounded by the Church City, the old town quarters, the public buildings and parts of the younger permanent settlement'. The justification reads as follows:
Gammelstad church town is an outstanding example of the traditional church town found in northern Scandinavia. It illustrates in an outstanding way the adaptation of traditional urban planning to the special geographical and climatological conditions of a difficult natural environment..
Nederluleå church
The church in Gammelstad church town is called Nederluleå Church and is the largest medieval church in Norrland. The church was built in the 15th century as a parish church for the Kalix, Råne and Lule river valleys, at the same time as they wanted to show off a powerful Sweden to Russia.
The church, which was consecrated by Archbishop Jakob Ulfsson in 1492, is also magnificent inside. Although it was a sparsely populated area, the settlement was relatively rich due to the trade in salmon and furs.
The church cottages
The red cottages of the church town spread out around the church. Most are small, low buildings with only one or two chambers. People used to live here, in their church cottages, during church holidays.
Still today, the cottages are privately owned and still used only for temporary visits and overnight stays. Living here permanently is not allowed. So there may be someone "at home" here and there, but most likely it is calm and quiet when you pass by. Regardless, the environment is incredibly charming!
One of the cottages has been converted into a viewing room, and when it is open you can come in and have a look, to see what it was like in the old days. The small beds, with hatches, could often sleep three people - cramped, but good for keeping warm.
Visiting Gammelstad church town
So, what is it like to visit Gammelstad Church Town? For starters, you can get here and wander around on your own, discovering the amazingly beautiful surroundings.
If it's open, you can also check out the Visitor Centre, located in the bright red-roofed building with a tower. There are brochures and maps, a small souvenir shop and staff to answer questions. There are also guided tours from time to time. We went on one of these, as an enthusiastic guide made the visit even more interesting. Right next to the visitor centre there is also a nice little café.
Hägnan Open Air Museum
A short walk from Gammelstad church town, the Hägnan open-air museum showcases old-fashioned buildings from Norrbotten. Unlike the church town, the buildings in the open-air museum are not in their original location, but have been moved here from different parts of Norrbotten. There are around 50 buildings and a cosy café.
Where can you stay at Gammelstad church town, or park your campervan?
If you want to stay right by the church town, you can stay at Gammelstads gästhem, which is a small hotel/hostel. There are of course many more accommodation options in the centre of Luleå.
Are you, like us, travelling in a caravan? Then there are also different options. If you want to stay in a campsite, you can stay in a beautiful First Camp Arcus - Luleå. In the centre of Luleå there is a parking space in Ettan's boat harbour and the possibility to stand without service at the icebreakers. It is also possible to fricamp at various locations in the neighbourhood of the church town.
More to see and do in the neighbourhood
When you visit Gammelstad church town, you may want to take the opportunity to see more of Luleå, with the Norrbotten Museum, the Norrbotten Railway Museum and the F21 Aviation Museum. You can also go on excursions to the lovely Storforsen lake or the Kalix with the Siknäs Fortress.
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Have you visited Gammelstad church town?
Have you visited Gammelstad church town in Luleå? Or perhaps you have seen another of Sweden's church towns? Please tell us!
Visiting Old Town Church Town - info and facts
- Location: Gammelstad, just west of the centre of Luleå
- Municipality: Luleå municipality
- County: Norrbotten County
- Landscape: Norrbotten
- Unesco World Heritage Site: Since 1996
- Food service: Café Fägnan, Ullas café, restaurant Kaptensgården and Iraj Kyrkbyn Restaurant & Pizzeria.
- Opening hours: You can always stroll around outdoors among the church cottages and the buildings of the Hägnan Open Air Museum. For current opening hours of the Visitor Centre, the Hägnan open-air museum, the church, the viewing hut and the various food services, see the website.
- Guided tours: Can be booked online, on the destination's website, or in person at the Visitor Centre.
- Read more: You can find more information at the destination's website.
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bmlarstravellingblog says:
We visited Gammelstad church town last autumn, a really nice world heritage site!
For your next trip to Norrland, we can recommend the Sami church towns of Ankarede and especially Fatmomakke along the Vildmarksvägen, so fascinating.
26 August 2023 - 11:17
Monica says:
So much fun with this. My grandmother's birthplace a long time ago - only visited briefly, but this makes me want to plan another trip to the north!
26 August 2023 - 17:17
Mariann says:
He lives right next to the church cottages in Öjebyn, of which there are now only 150. The church was built in the 16th century and was found to be too small, so it was rebuilt as a cross church in the 18th century.
Next to the church is a bell tower that is probably older than the church. It may be part of some kind of defence building.
I remember very well the so-called youth weekends that were Pentecost in the spring and Michaelmas in the autumn.
Back then, the village was bustling with funfair, tombola and dancing. Very popular for us young people at that time
There is an active church house association that organises markets in autumn and spring and a summer flea market. The local sports association organises a Christmas market and another operator a summer market.
There is also a year-round café in the old parish house.
The church also has activities for children, including a search for church mice. These soft toys are located in the church town and are searched for using a map,
26 August 2023 - 20:17
JoY says:
We have been to Luleå but only to the cathedral, as we had an errand there. We have not visited Gammelstad, how we could have missed it.
26 August 2023 - 21:44
Lilian says:
The second largest village of church cottages is in Öjebyn, the old town of Piteå, which is located a few kilometres west of Piteå town. There are now about 140 cottages with 440 rooms. Most are unpainted log houses with 6-8 chambers that are 2 floors high, there are also smaller cottages with 1-4 chambers, which means that the church village has a varied appearance, shutters and front doors are often painted in different colours.
Öjebyn -Piteå was a residential town until 1856 when Luleå took over as a residential town. There have been several fires in the church village that have destroyed many cottages and stables, which means that the number of cottages has been significantly higher. in previous centuries.
Öjeby church town is well worth a visit
27 August 2023 - 0:30
Lena in Wales and a bit everywhere says:
Wow, how nice to see summer pictures from this amazing place.
It was on my wish list for a long time, but in February this year the dream became reality. Such a fantastic experience.
30 August 2023 - 9:02